


In the Eye of the Beholder

by mific



Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Alternate Universe, Animal Transformation, Community: picfor1000, Community: romancingmcshep, Community: story-works, Crack, Fairy Tale Elements, Fanfiction, Humor, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-28
Updated: 2018-02-28
Packaged: 2019-03-25 03:16:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13825326
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mific/pseuds/mific
Summary: "Elizabeth!" Sheppard called, grinning. "Come say hi to Rodney – he's the hero of the hour."





	In the Eye of the Beholder

**Author's Note:**

> Written as a kind of "Challenge bingo" to clear the decks!  
> This is for Pic-for-1000, the Whatif_AU "Ocean" challenge, Romancing McShep, and the "Surprise" prompt on Story Works. It's also an episode tag to S2E14 – "Grace Under Pressure".  
> Here's my [picture prompt for pic-for-1000](https://unsplash.com/photos/SmZWvAkKRVM)  
> Also, oh so much crack, and I totally stole the idea from [silentwalrus's Captain America fic](http://archiveofourown.org/works/13460625).

"I'm sorry," Elizabeth said, rising from her desk to hurry after Major Lorne, "I don't understand. Why isn't Dr. McKay in the infirmary? The jumper crashed into the ocean, you said?"

"It's quite a story," Lorne said, ushering her through the door to the hallway. "Griffin's in the infirmary – he was piloting Dr. McKay back from the mainland."

"Will he be alright?"

Lorne nodded, pausing by the transporters. "He inhaled water and was hypothermic so they're warming him up, but Dr. Beckett says he'll be fine."

They stepped into the transporter and he touched the South Pier symbol.

"But Rodney?" Elizabeth tried not to sound anxious.

Lorne scratched his head. "Its…pretty surprising. You'll have to see it to believe it, ma'am." he raised one hand in a helpless gesture. "Beckett's theory is that it's something from Dr. McKay's Scottish ancestry."

He led her onto the pier where Ronon, Teyla, and several Marines and scientists were clustered around a large wet puddle on the deck, in which sat Sheppard and something enormous and blubbery. The blubbery thing barked demandingly and waved a flipper. Its other flipper was draped proprietorially over Sheppard's thigh.

"That looks like an Earth seal," Elizabeth said, baffled. She turned to Lorne. "I wasn't aware there _were_ Earth seals in Pegasus."

"There aren't," Lorne said. He indicated a scientist scribbling furiously on a tablet. “Dr. Wilmott from zoology says they don't exist here."

"Then what–"

"That's Dr. McKay."

Elizabeth turned to him, incredulous, and Lorne grimaced. "Apparently, once the jumper sank to a certain depth, the pressure triggered it. After he transformed, he opened the rear hatch and hauled Griffin up to the surface, then supported Griffin while he swam back to the city."

The seal snorted wetly and waved at her. It was huge and very whiskery.

"Elizabeth!" Sheppard called, grinning. "Come say hi to Rodney – he's the hero of the hour."

"...Yes," Elizabeth said, edging forward gingerly. "I gather he saved Captain Griffin's life. Ah … you're quite certain this _is_ Rodney, not some random aquatic mammal?"

"No, no, it's definitely McKay, I can kind of understand him, don't ask me how," Sheppard said cheerfully. "He's an Earth seal – a selkie. It's passed down on his mother's side of the family. Rodney said he hasn't bothered being a seal since he gave up music and devoted himself to physics."

The seal rolled his eyes and belched, then grunted. Sheppard chuckled. "He says if he'd known the idiots he'd have to work with, he might have stayed a seal."

He looked up, past Elizabeth's shoulder. "Oh, hey, Svenson, the mess helped us out?"

A Marine carrying a bucket hurried past Elizabeth. "Yes, sir. They say the fish's fresh-caught this morning."

The seal – Rodney, she supposed – abandoned Sheppard and lolloped forward eagerly, barking. Unwisely, Svenson grabbed a fish from the bucket and threw it. It bounced off the seal's shiny wet head. The seal narrowed his eyes and reared up, roaring, and Svenson dropped the bucket in a panic and scrambled back. The seal fell upon the scattered fish and began chewing noisily with every sign of contentment.

"He's got a good appetite," Sheppard said, watching the seal admiringly.

The seal – Rodney, she must try to think of it as Rodney – flipped a fish in the air and tilted his head back, swallowing it whole.

Sheppard laughed. "Attaboy!"

Rodney chomped and made a few barking, snorting remarks through a masticated mouthful of fish. "His table manners haven't improved any," Elizabeth said, exchanging a long-suffering look with Teyla and taking a step back to avoid being sprayed with fish bits.

Sheppard grinned. "Nah, typical Rodney."

The seal farted loudly, adding to the general odor of fish. "I like him like this," Ronon said, smirking. "He's funny."

Having polished off his meal in short order, the seal gave a mournful, hooting bark and humped back to Sheppard.

"All gone? We'll get you more later", Sheppard said, putting an affectionate arm around the blubber where the seal's shoulders might have been, if he were a person. But then, Elizabeth supposed that he still _was_ a person, really. She'd always thought of selkies as ethereal and otherworldly, and they were usually beautiful women in the old tales. Watching Sheppard's delight in Rodney, even in this hulking, whiskery form, and how they leaned into each other, she supposed beauty really _did_ lie in the eye of the beholder.

"Do you think he'll transform back?" she asked. This was all very well, but Rodney wasn't going to be able to fix delicate machinery with flippers.

"He's just shy," Sheppard said. "Give us some space and I'll bring him around."

At bedtime, long after they'd left Sheppard and Rodney alone, Elizabeth happened on Sheppard walking backward down a hallway, dropping a brightly colored candy every few yards. The seal followed him, hoovering up the candies with eager barks and grunts.

Sheppard winked. "He's still got a sweet tooth." He opened the door to his room and the seal undulated inside. The door hissed shut, leaving a wet trail behind on the inlaid floor.

The next day, Rodney was his usual self. "I might still transform to terrify the imbeciles," he said, working his way enthusiastically through eggs and bacon. Sheppard slipped him a tin of sardines and he scowled. "Yes, yes, bring on the fish and performing seal jokes."

Ronon hid a brightly colored beach ball under the table.

Nothing was secret in Atlantis, so Elizabeth heard that Rodney often took a swim on his and Sheppard's "beer on the pier" nights and he seemed to have moved into Sheppard's quarters entirely, but being a selkie didn't interfere with his duties so it wasn't an issue.

"Nice to see you and the Colonel so happy together," she said to him on the balcony one day.

He shot her an impish look. "Well, you know, he _has_ saved my skin, and I mean that literally." He smiled, looking back out at the ocean. "We take turns."

 


End file.
